In the coming weeks, millions of Brits will be hit by higher costs for their household bills. Every April, the amount we pay for our energy, water, TV, broadband and mobile phone goes up in an inflation-linked increase. This means that, within weeks, customers signed up to contracts from Sky, Virgin Media and BT will end up paying more for the same service. This is usually done to cover rising business costs and network upgrades, with the energy companies and telecoms providers among those passing these costs onto their customers. For example, Sky said it plans to up its prices after investing ‘heavily to deliver the best and most reliable products’ to its customers, as well as ‘increased supplier costs’. In February, the company confirmed its TV and broadband customers would be hit with an average 6.2% rise in their bills, which it said is ‘either in line with or lower than other providers’.
The April increase is often built into a contract and therefore is agreed to when we sign up. However, the price increase should be clearer for consumers going forward after the telecoms regulator introduced new rules meaning TV, broadband and mobile providers must now up their prices ‘in pounds and pence’, rather than a percentage. This is apples to billpayers who took out a contract after January 9 this year, with their bills set to rise by £3.50. The inflation-linked increase does not usually affect streaming platforms like Netflix, Disney+ or Prime Video, so those are good alternatives for keeping costs down and they won’t lock you in for more than a month at a time.
Most regular TV providers will charge customers an early termination fee if cancelling within the agreed minimum term, but Sky is one of the few who lets its customers leave without this penalty if a price increase has been announced. However, this can only be done within 30 days of an announcement being made, so unfortunately it may be too late for this year.
In February, Sky said it would be contacting every customer impacted by the price rise ‘to provide clarity about how their products and services will be affected’, so keep an eye on emails and letters regarding this. Even if you miss the chance to cancel your contract this year, those signing up for a new Sky contract could leave in around a year’s time if another increase is announced in April 2026.
For those who can leave their contracts now, it’s always worth shopping around as Virgin Media, Sky and BT provide plenty of contract options which now start at £15 per month.
Virgin Media’s TV contracts also include broadband and start at £28.99 per month for the M125 Fibre Broadband and Flex TV plan, which includes more than 150 channels. The broadband element of the contract is tied for 18 months, but the TV element comes on a flexible 30-day rolling contract, which is ideal for those who may be put off by a long term commitment.
If you are happy to commit, Virgin offers more TV bundles that include Sky Sports, Sky Cinema, a free Netflix subscription and faster broadband. Prices start at £34.99 for the Bigger Combo bundle, all the way to £88.99 for the Mega Volt bundle.
Sky launched a set of new TV packages last year, with its £15 Essential TV plan the cheapest contract from among these three providers. This entry-level option comes with more than 100 channels and free subscriptions to Netflix and Discovery+, so if you already pay for these streamers you could cancel your existing subscriptions and save a bit more.
Sky customers can usually get better value by bundling their TV contracts with extras like Sky Sports or broadband, such as the £35 Essential TV and Sky Sports bundle or the £35 Essential TV and Full Fibre 150 bundle.
BT offers a range of TV bundles through EE after it took over the mobile network in 2016. Like Virgin, these are taken alongside a broadband contract and start at £27.99 per month for the Entertainment and Full Fibre 2 plan which includes a NOW Entertainment subscription with channels such as Sky Atlantic, Sky Max and a Netflix subscription, plus 74Mbps broadband.
There’s also plans to suit movie buffs and sport fans, with the Full Works and Full Fibre 2 plan currently reduced to £51.99 per month and coming with NOW Entertainment, Sky Cinema, Sky Sports and TNT Sports. A caveat to this is that the discount only lasts for a limited time and the price will rise to the standard £111.99 from March 2026, which is pricier than any other Sky or Virgin plan.